DUSHANBE, December 16, 2013, Asia-Plus — A three-day regional workshop aimed at sharing practices in international cooperation for investigation, prosecution and adjudication of terrorism related cases concluded in Dushanbe on December 12, 2013.
The event was organized by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in co-operation with the OSCE Office in Tajikistan and with support of the OSCE Secretariat’s Transnational Threats Department (Action against Terrorism Unit).
According to the OSCE office, the event brought together 35 representatives from General Prosecutor’s Offices, financial monitoring bodies, national investigation departments of ministries of internal affairs and national security committees, as well as judges of municipal and supreme courts from the Central Asian region. They reportedly exchanged experiences and discussed challenges related to extradition, mutual legal assistance and co-operation between law-enforcement agencies to counter terrorism.
The workshop participants discussed counter-terrorism practices in the UK, the US, the Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Representatives from INTERPOL, OSCE Office in Tajikistan and the UNODC delivered presentations and took part in the discussions.
“Supporting countries in the region in fighting terrorism is high on the agenda of the OSCE,” said Ulf Billving, Counter Terrorism and Police Advisor of the OSCE Office in Tajikistan. “Terrorism does not recognize borders, and it is essential for all the countries to work together and assist one another in identifying, preventing and eradicating this scourge.”
Victoria Catliff, Regional Project Coordinator of the UNODC Regional Office in Kazakhstan, emphasized in her opening remarks the need for co-operation among Central Asian states in the areas of intelligence, mutual legal assistance and extradition. She pointed out that it is the event participants themselves who are the most important resources for regional cross-border co-operation and exchange.
